This invention relates to a mobile telecommunications, also known as wireless or cellular telecommunications, and more particularly to a system and method for providing personalized multimedia broadcasting/multicasting to mobile subscribers. While the invention is particularly directed to the art of mobile telecommunications networks, and will be thus described with specific reference thereto, it will be appreciated that the invention may have usefulness in other fields and applications.
Mobile telecommunications Service Providers, are deploying high-speed data capability in their telecommunications networks suitable for transmitting multimedia. However many of the anticipated applications are slow to be realized.
One factor inhibiting these applications is that most data-centric wireless applications require a dedicated packet data session to be established between the mobile handset and the data source. For a data-throughput rate of 100 kbps (for minimal video bandwidth), a fully equipped IxEV-DO cell can support only 20-50 simultaneous users, depending upon RF conditions. However, this is far fewer than the number of subscribers a typical cell supports, since such cells can cover areas measured in square miles.
Other technologies for allowing mobile handsets to receive multimedia content exist, such as those utilizing out-of-band (for the cellular network) transmissions which do not reduce the available wireless bandwidth. However, these technologies suffer from lack of geographic granularity and diversity, since the same program content is broadcast to an entire metropolitan area. As such, these systems are costly to use, limiting their use to advertising, satellite radio, television reruns, etc.
Consequently, most existing mobile telecommunications services utilize the “pull” paradigm, where mobile subscribers have to seek out, and pay for, the multimedia content they receive. This scenario represents an additional barrier to ease of use and willingness to adopt such services.
Wireless subscribers, and consumers in general, have demonstrated their preference to personalize and customize the services they receive. For example, the growth of satellite radio and cable television attest to the fact that consumers no longer subscribe to a pre-established rather uniform model of broadcast television or traditional radio. In addition, consumers generally seek relief from advertising, as evidenced by the success of commercial-free satellite radio, limited commercial television, recording devices that can fast-forward through commercials, watching a TV series on DVD a year late rather than live, etc.
The present invention contemplates a new and improved system and method that resolves the above-referenced difficulties and others.